New Mexico

Bordello murders, fatal wedding-day accidents, hate-fueled arson
attacks, and other tragedies have left behind unsettled spirits in
historic restaurants and bars across the country. For the spine-chilling
chance to see the resident apparitions and experience their antics, sit
down to a filet mignon in Michigan or hit the slot machines at a Nevada
saloon. Here are some of America's most haunted restaurants and
bars—ones that have given employees, patrons, and even ghost hunters
more than what they ordered.

Mission Table, Traverse City, Michigan

The unhappy ghost of Genevive Stickney, an obese and jealous woman, still frequents her former residence, now Mission Table
restaurant. As the story goes, Genevive and her Chicago lumber-baron
husband built the home in the late 1800s. Succumbing to the excesses of
good food and fruit brandies, the attractive Genevive became quite
stout. She had a special gilt-edged mirror installed that made her
appear thinner than she was, but eventually she became so large that she
needed an elevator to transport her to the second floor. When her
philandering husband took up with a mistress and left the mistress all
his money, Genevive took her own life.

Haunted Encounters: In Genevive's mirror,
restaurant guests have seen the reflection of a woman dressed in
19th-century clothing with hair pulled into a tight bun, the way
Genevive wore hers. Lights turn themselves on and off, objects are
mysteriously hurled through the air at people, hands on the grandfather
clock are moved ahead, and candles are found burning in the morning.

The Brass Rail, Hoboken, New Jersey

A ghost bride is said to haunt the historical Brass Rail
restaurant in downtown Hoboken. Legend has it that on her wedding day
in 1904, she tripped at the top of the staircase, fell, broke her neck,
and died. Later that night, her distraught husband, who was drinking
heavily, wrote a suicide note and hung himself in a room near the
stairs.

Haunted Encounters: Restaurant staff and
patrons have spotted spirits of the bride and groom wandering up and
down the stairs. A photo taken by the New Jersey Ghost Hunters Society
revealed a white wisp of smoke hovering above the stairs when no one was
smoking in the room. Others say they have heard walking in the upstairs
dining room when it was empty and seen the ghost of a woman wearing
white in the back alley.

The UpStairs Lounge, New Orleans, Louisiana

Forty years ago, one of the deadliest crimes against the LGBT
community in U.S. history took place at this French Quarter gay bar
above The Jimani Lounge & Restaurant
when an arsonist set it on fire, killing 32 men. The UpStairs Lounge
had only one entrance—the door at the bottom of the stairwell, where the
fire originated. While the fire blazed, patrons tried desperately to
climb out the windows but couldn't escape, since windows were mostly
barred or blocked completely. Several bodies were unclaimed by
embarrassed family members, and the arsonist was never caught. The
UpStairs Lounge area is now the kitchen of the first-floor Jimani Lounge
& Restaurant.

Haunted Encounters: The building's current
owner, who witnessed the event as a child when his father was owner, has
seen apparitions of charred bodies, dark shadows, white orbs, and
flashes of light in the building. When Syfy's Ghost Hunters crew visited last year, detectors picked up screeching noises in the stairwell.

The Masquerade, Atlanta, Georgia

This concert venue in Atlanta's historic Old Fourth Ward neighborhood
was originally a mill that produced wood shavings. Since the mill
property's opening at the turn of the 20th century, it has seen its
share of fires, structural collapses, and the gruesome accidental death
of mill worker Hubert Neal in 1899. But the grisly stories that
circulate at The Masquerade only add to the appeal for the goths, metalheads, and punk rockers who converge here for shows.

Haunted Encounters: Staff and concertgoers
repeatedly report sightings of an apparition of a tall black man and say
they've heard voices, screaming, and heavy phantom footsteps. An
investigation by the Georgia Society for the Paranormal Sciences
gathered accounts from multiple employees who described the feeling of
being watched. The group recorded several unexplained noises and
encountered a dark human-shaped mass. In the middle of the night, the
group watched as a mysterious dense white fog appeared and dissipated on
the club's second level, called "Heaven."

Pioneer Saloon, Goodsprings, Nevada

The paranormal activity at this 100-year-old Wild West saloon just outside Las Vegas kicked off the 2013 season of Ghost Adventures
on The Travel Channel. Reportedly haunted by an elderly miner and a
cheating gambler who was killed at a card table in 1915, the Pioneer Saloon
hasn't changed much since the days of the town's mining boom. Bullet
holes from the gambler's murder can still be seen in the wall.

Haunted Encounters: Nearly every bar
employee has seen the ghost of the elderly miner, a short man who wears a
cowboy hat, standing behind people at the slot machines or hanging out
by the potbellied stove. The spirit of the gambler makes an occasional
appearance at a card table at the back of the bar. Visitors and staff
have also been known to hear disembodied voices and see mysterious
trails of cigarette smoke materialize.

The Brentwood Restaurant & Wine Bistro, Little River, South Carolina

Drawing paranormal-research conferences, A&E's My Ghost Story crew, and numerous investigation groups, The Brentwood Restaurant & Wine Bistro
has been called the most haunted location on the Grand Strand. It's
just north of Myrtle Beach's main drag in a 103-year-old Victorian home.
The restaurant owners have embraced the supernatural, saying they've
never felt threatened. They regularly plan special-event dinners with
psychics and talk openly about the restaurant's spook factor.

Haunted Encounters: Guests often get
"locked" in the second-floor bathroom. Strange voices, unexplained
movement of equipment, and shadowy figures have been reported by even
the most skeptical guests and employees. When one of the restaurant
owners asked the spirit who was there, the reply—captured in a
recording—was "Clarence." Clarence and Essie Bessent-McCorsley were the
original owners of the Victorian home.

Jean Bonnet Tavern, Bedford, Pennsylvania

Built in the 1760s at a major junction of the only road connecting
eastern Pennsylvania with the Ohio River, the Jean Bonnet was an
important trading post and watering hole for early settlers. If the
tavern's original stone walls could talk, they'd tell of rowdy trappers
and traders, Whiskey Rebellion farmers' meetings, and encampments of
troops summoned here by George Washington. Stories of the spirits at the
Jean Bonnet Tavern are captured in The Pennsylvania Ghost Guide, Vol. II by Patty A. Wilson.

Haunted Encounters: Guests and staff
describe a strange man in the bar after-hours, doors being opened and
closed, and the sensation of being touched when no one is around. When
members of the Central Pennsylvania Paranormal Association spent the
night, a group of apparitions in frontier-type clothing appeared in a
doorway and watched a man playing the piano at the other end of the bar.

Catfish Plantation, Waxahachie, Texas

In the south Dallas suburb of Waxahachie, Catfish Plantation
restaurant occupies an 1895 Victorian home where three former residents
are believed to have died. The apparition of Elizabeth, murdered here
on her wedding day in the 1920s, appears in her wedding gown. A
Depression-era farmer named Will walks around the lobby and front porch
in his overalls. Caroline, a strict religious woman who detested
alcohol, passed away here in 1970, and now she sends wine glasses flying
into the wall. The Travel Channel's Extreme Restaurants show, NBC News, and several paranormal groups have reported on the Catfish Plantation's strange occurrences.

Haunted Encounters: Besides seeing the
resident ghosts, the restaurant's guests and staff have felt cold spots
that move around. Clocks with missing parts chime. Doors, lights, and
faucets all operate at will. And several knives go missing every night.

The Jury Room, Columbus, Ohio

One of the oldest continually operating restaurants in Columbus,
opened in 1831, this downtown mainstay has plenty of stories to fuel its
ghostly reputation. It was built on Native American burial ground and
lost its third floor to a fire in the late 1800s. The original tin
ceiling and historical photos are a throwback to The Jury Room's
days as a bordello. At the bar, you can order a "Hung Jury," a
"Bordello Bubbly," or a "Lorenzo's Revenge," all nods to the prostitute
who shot a man on the bordello's front doorstep in the 1850s and her
subsequent trial for murder.

Haunted Encounters: A tall, shadowy man has
been seen roaming around the bar and appearing behind bartenders.
Objects move at will and women describe being attacked by unseen forces.
There have been so many occurrences that the staff now keeps a ghost
log and The Travel Channel's The Dead Files has come to investigate.

High Noon Restaurant & Saloon, Albuquerque, New Mexico

In Albuquerque's Old Town, two different spirits are believed to haunt High Noon Restaurant & Saloon,
housed in one of the historic district's oldest structures. Constructed
in 1785, the building has served as both a casino and a successful
brothel. According to Ken Hudnall's book Spirits of the Border IV: The History and Mystery of New Mexico,
some say High Noon is haunted by the ghost of a trapper. The female
spirit, investigated by the Southwest Ghost Hunter's Association, wears
an old-fashioned white formal dress.

Haunted Encounters: Hudnall says the male
ghost may be responsible for the unseen tapping that customers and
employees feel on their shoulders, the smell of burning when the
fireplace isn't lit, and the calling out of employees' names. Several
customers and staff members have reported supernatural sightings,
including the female spirit, who haunts the Santos Room lounge. High
Noon is one of many restaurants and bars on the lantern-lit Ghost Tour of Old Town.

Located in a desert climate, Santa Fe takes water conservation and
other environmental practices very seriously. However, you can bask in
the city's eco-friendly ways without losing your wallet or peace of
mind. Come stay at a calming resort with biodynamic gardens, eat organic ice cream with an innovative twist, and shop for sundries made solely from hemp.

StaySunrise Springs: This 70-acre green resort
brings art and nature together to create a tranquil getaway. Walk in
the biodynamic heirloom gardens that grow the herbs and vegetables used
in the restaurant (not
open during winter); relax in the spa or the Japanese tea house; or
take yoga, tai chi, or raku pottery classes. The hotel is committed to
proper recycling and composting, as well as using biodegradable spa
products and in-room toiletries.

EatTara's Organic Ice Cream:
Serving the certified organic ice cream, Tara's
brings natural elements into every scoop. The owner and chef, Tara
Esperanza, has incorporated local ingredients to invent more than 80
out-of-this world flavors, including green-chili pistachio, hibiscus
granita, peach agave sorbet, and adzuki bean with black sesame. You can
also purchase organic ice cream brownie sandwiches or cakes at the
shop.

ShopSanta Fe Hemp: At Santa Fe Hemp, you can discover this natural fiber's
wide variety of purposes. The shop sells everything under the sun, from
hemp clothing, hats, bags, and socks to housewares. Prices vary by
item, but you can feel good about every purchase, as hemp is a highly
renewable resource, maturing in a short period of time and requiring no
pesticides or herbicides to assist in its growth.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park, located in southern New Mexico, is comprised of 117 caves (part of a system of more than 300). Unlike most caves, these weren't created by running water; they were formed by sulfuric acid, which dissolved the surrounding limestone. There are several different tours available beneath the earth, including self-guided tours of the Natural Entrance and the Big Room and guided tours of Kings Palace, Left Hand Tunnel, and Hall of the White Giant. The grounds are also open for camping and hiking.

PlayBat Flight Program: From Memorial Day weekend through mid-October, visitors can watch bats exit the caves around sunset or return to them pre-dawn. The free program includes a talk by a park ranger beforehand, and in the evening, the chance to sit back and watch as thousands of bats head out for their nightly feast. The early morning program offers the chance to see bats dive hundreds of feet to re-enter the caves. While the best flights can be seen in August or September, when baby bats join the mix, this awesome sight is worth catching anytime.

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